The present invention relates to a service providing technology which utilized positional information, and in particular, relates to a technology which provides guidance information to each user individually, in a public space where a lot of users move in miscellaneous directions, represented by airports, shopping centers, etc.
In traffic bases such as stations, airports, etc., or in public spaces like shopping centers and amusement parks, destinations (of guests) are miscellaneous. In this connection, for a guest who is unfamiliar with the place, information centers, direction boards, Kiosk terminals, etc., are disposed so that the guidance information is provided.
However, an equipment which is capable of providing the guidance information exits only at a limited place, and when a guest wishes to have the guidance information, it is necessary for him/her to go to such a limited place. Therefore, there are many cases where the guest can not have the guidance information without going such a limited place, when he/she wishes to obtain it.
As an item by which the guidance information can be obtained at the place where it is wished, there is a technology of accessing to a Web site of the guidance information from a portable telephone, a PDA with a wireless communication function, etc., and of obtaining the guidance information from there. However, the suchlike technology has such problems of operability that it is troublesome to start up a Web browser or input a URL, etc. in order to access a desired site. Also, even if it could be accessed, in case of map information, it takes time to complete recognition of a current position and a direction of facing, a direction of a destination, and usability is not good. Furthermore, portable telephones, PDAs, etc. have small display screens and have a problem of visibility.
As an item which solves the problems of operability and usability, for example, there is a navigation system which navigates users up to a selling space of desired foodstuffs, by use of an information output device which is attached to a shopping cart used in a store such as a shopping center, etc. (e.g., see, Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2002-284012 (hereinafter, referred to as Patent Document 1)).
In this technology, information which can be provided to the guest as the guidance information is limited to information in the floor, and therefore, an operation to obtain the guidance information is easier than an operation to obtain general information from a Web site, etc. However, since the guidance information is displayed on an output device attached to a cart, the problem of visibility is not improved.
On one hand, as an item which improves visibility, there is a system which flexibly realizes various information services desired by users, not only on a specific terminal but also utilizing universally an information equipment as a network resource which exists at a periphery (e.g., see, Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No.H11-73399 (hereinafter, referred to as Patent Document 2)). By utilizing this technology, it is possible to switch a destination of a display output not only on a dedicated terminal but also to an output device such as a desired display, etc. which exist at a periphery according to need.